Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to wireless communication and, most particularly, to a data communication method between neighbor awareness networking (NAN) devices operating in a power save mode and a data communication-performing NAN device operating in the power save mode.
Related Art
There is a growing demand for a proximity-based service for transmitting and receiving data between users in close proximity and application technologies based on the proximity-based service. Recently, with the explosive use of mobile Internet devices such as a smart phone, a tablet, or the like, there is a need for a device-to-device (D2D) communication technology which provides a new proximity-based service capable of guaranteeing a wider transmission range and a higher quality of service (QoS) than the conventional D2D communication technology such as Bluetooth or wireless fidelity (WiFi) peer to peer (P2P). The D2D communication technology may be utilized in various services such as commercial services, public safety related services, or the like.
WiFi Alliance (WFA) has been conducting research to support low power discovery between a plurality of terminals (or stations (STAs)) since 2011, and completed the draft specification 1.0 in May 2013. Unlike IEEE 802.11aq, the WFA supports mutual discovery between terminals without an access point (AP) in an independent basic service set (IBSS) environment of IEEE 802.11, and uses a synchronous-type protocol. Interworking with a WiFi P2P specification is taken into consideration in direct communication performed between terminals after the discovery between the terminals.